Submarine propulsion



Aug- 1 -1933- L. Y. SPEAR Er AL, ,920,280

SUBMARINE PROPULSI ON I Filed Sept. 24, 1932 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 FM- Aug. l, 1933. L. Y. sPEAR Er AL SUBMARINE PROPULSION 2 Sheets-Shea?l 2 Filed sept. 24, 1932 Nli Patented Aug. 1, 1933 iszazsof SKUBMARINE PROULSION Lawrence Y. Spear, Hugo E. Grieshaber, and y Ernest Nibbs, New London, Conn., assignors to Electric Boat Company, Groton,-` `Conn., a' VCorporation of New Jersey Application September 24, 1932 Serial No. y634,694:

14 claims. (o1. 11i-16.)

Our invention relates to submarine propulsion. The chief object of the invention is to provide an all-electric drive suitablefor submarine pro pulsion.

5 In our copending application, Serial No. 639,120, filed October 22, 1932, we have disclosed a form of drive suitable for submarine propulsion, employing a plurality. of engine-generator units disposed in an engine room to secure a compact and eicient arrangement. In the form of drive therein disclosed theY engine-generator units are so constructed and disposed as to secure a compact, highly eiilcient power plant with V effective utilization of the space allotted to the engine room. In the organization therein disclosed the units are disposed with the shafts of the engines and generators mounted in horizontalposition parallel'to each other.

According to the present invention a similar compact and eicient organization of the power plant is effected bydisposal of the shafts of the units in a 'vertical position. The shafts of the engine and generator of a unit may be disposed in alignment or parallel to eachother. The 2 present organization utilizes certain of the features disclosed and claimed in said copending application, particularly the use of the same flow of air for cooling the generators and for scavenging and/or supercharging the engines or Aoptionally employing closed cooling circuits for cooling the generators. v arrangement of connection and control of the units to the Adrivingmotors and/orA to the battery is employed. f

The present invention provides a compact Vbut eflicient disposal of the engine-generator units. It permits the generators to be driven directly or to be geared to a higherspeed than the engine speed, with no substantial increase in the length of the engine room. It provides a low center of gravity and provides numerous advantages which will be apparent from the following detailed description, taken withthe accompanying drawings. Y Y

Now in order to acquaint those skilled in the art with the construction and operation of a device embodying our invention, weV shall describe,` in connection with the accompanying drawings, a specific embodiment of the same.

Figure 1 shows a transverse vertical section through the engine room,Y showing two of the short connectionslG-Ll leading'to 'the genera-'f' 1 engine-generator units arranged abreast; Y

Figure 2 is a vertical longitudinal section 5 through the engine room, showingthree ofthe Preferably; the same units arranged in line fore and'aft toprovide a total of six units; and.` v Y, g ,K Figure -3 is a fragmentary sectional view of a detail illustrating the gear arrangementlfor driving the generator shaft at higher speed thanthe GQ engineshaft. l l f Referring first -to Figure `1, theaouter skin er Yshell 1 of the submarine encloses the inner,or

pressure hull 2," suitable frames being interposed.v Within the pressure hull2, which-is4 substantially 65 cylindrical,V aV plurality of vertically dispose engine-generator units 3-3- are mounted.

A floor or deck 5, is disposed horizontally ata level slightiy` below' the centerI lineof the hull; although the exact location of this hoor: is optional. 1 1

lEach engine-generator unit comprises two main parts, namely, the-engine 6 and thegenera-- tor l 1 .Y i

. Suitable transverse frames or bulkheads for supporting the floor5 are disposed on the :bot-V tom of the hull 2, these being omitted for `the sake of clearness.

Eachengine unit 6-,comprises a plurality -of radially disposed cylinders 8,1having pistons andv 801, connectingV rods coupled, in .pairsvto 4the indi-.- Vidual throws or cranks of thercrankshaft 9, which has its. longitudinal axisV disposed vertically. `The engine hereshown is a multi-cylin-` der injection engine of the iDiesel.` type. The radial disposal of the cylinders is not essential,V but desirable in order to secure maximum -ac cessibility with minimum axial length. The crank Y case 10 has suitable' bearings for the ends '.of the` crank-.shaft 9 to carry the radial andivertical,90 loads thereupon; Acommon exhaust manifold 12, preferably in the shape ofV aring, hasa iianged outletv connectionY 13 which in turnv is connected to an exhaustmanifold 14. The'coxnrnonY ex-E haust manifold 12 `is connected toa `row'of en-` gines 'and the manifold 14 is ink turn-connected" to amuier, preferably disposed inthe Superf structure outside the engine room. w k-i VEach cylinder 8 is connected to theA manifold 12 of-.theparticular'engine by a4 short exhaust i100 passageway 15. In the embodiment illustrated, the air for the intake of the"'engine is `taken through the generator to cool the' same. This, Y it will be understood,is optional where thecoolr" ing air for the generators is delivered to-jthe in- .10 take of the engines. Y The cylinders 8`8 are con'r nected to intake passageways l.comprising-'thetor housing. A V-type enginevmay be` employed'l'lo any other suitableconnection.

vided, and it communicates with the top of the generator housing. It is to be understood that the air for cooling the generators may be moved through a heat exchange cooled by sea water or other means., in .a closed circulatory system. Optionally, the' generator may be cooled by an open circuitriiow. In each case, whether open circuit or closed circuit, a blower driven by the engine is used.

The generator unit '7 comprises a housing formed of an upper housing section 17, the field ring section 18 and the end bell or bottom section 19. The lower end of the engine crankcase 10 is provided with a flange whichv seats upon and is boltedto the top of the shell section 17. The shell section 1'7 has a pair of openings 20--20 'on each side, these openings being closed'by Through the openings 20 `the brushes for the commutator 23 may be incover plates 22-22.

spected and adjusted, and likewise, access is given to the field'coils which are disposed with' in the iield ring or frame 18. 1

The armature 24, with its commutator 23 at the lupper end of the shaft, is secured upon the shaft 24, said shaft25 having -a radial bearing in thegend bell 19. The upper end of the shaft 25 is coupledto a step bearing member 26 which supports the load of the armature in a vertical direction. The same, or a separate bearing carries theradialload of the upper end of the shaft 25. Two independent bearings, namely, a step bearing `on the lower face of `the'lange member and a cylindrical or radial bearing on the cy- Y -lindricalfportion below the flange, may be provided.' Y

The crank shaft 9 is coupled to the step bearing memberv 2-6 by being splined thereto, or by The sections 17, 18 and 19 are bolted together to `form a substantially air and water tight housingl for the generator. In fact, water could not enterV the .generator-until' it rose to the top of the ducts -30. l

The'neld frame section 18 is provided with an extending flange 28 which rests-.upon suitable supporting frames suchas 29 and 31, these frames extending Yto the inner shell `2 `and serving to support the vertical'load Vof the enginesv and generator units.

Transverse frames bracing the units against lateral stresses are also provided, these being omitted for the -sake oiclearness.v

Referring now. to FigurexZ, -we lhave shown A therein .the preferred manner 'of introducing the' cooling air for the generator 7. In this case,.verV tically extending ducts 30 are formedin vertically' extending bosses, preferablyv cast or otherwise formed integral with the housing units 17, 18 and 19. Through the 4ducts 3.0 airis taken'from im# mediately below the floor A5 and conveyedto the lower side-of the .eld ring 18V and to theflower end of thegarmature 24. *.NaturalV draft,.due to 3D- 30am,preferablyprovided with shutters or;

l the heat generated in the varmature and eld lcoils by` *the dow .of current therethrough, tends to foster an upward flow of air within the generator housing.

:If desired, the space below the door 5 yand be.` tween the ,bulkheads 32 and 33 which define the ends of the engine room may be provided with., air under a suitable pressure for forcing the airv through the genera-tors and .discharging either into the open orinto the engine intakes for supercharging and` scavenging the engines. The ducts to each generator. A fan disposed below the auxiliary units, taking its air from theA engine room, may force air into the space below the deck and thence to the generators, lor an air delivery trunk orl manifold from .the fan to the units .may be provided. Also, we contemplate the provision or" closed circuit cooling for the generators individually or in common. Each engine may drive a connected blower to move the air for cooling its coupled generator in a closed circuit through ay heat exchange cooled by sea water or in an open circuit whether the air be delivered to the engine under lsome pressure or be discharged into the open. If closed circuit cooling is employed the heat exchange devices maybe disposed within the generator casing or they may be disposed below the deck plate 5 conveniently near the corresponding unit. The engines rare preferably of the injection type, such, for example, as Diesel engines, and the air which passes through'the generator housing to cool theelectric conductors and associated parts is, inthe example illustrated, delivered through the short couplings 16--16 to the intake ports of the engine cylinders. Obviously, v'if desired,-separate ducts may be laid in the space under the floor for sup-- plying air from. a blower or the like to the en.

ure 2, iioor space for auxiliary units and equipment is provided. If. desired, the.auxiliaryA generating units may be of the same design herein shown vor they may be of any other desired or preferred design. A portion of the `space Within the hull below theloor may be devoted totankage space if desired.

While we have shown the-engine and genera' torshaits coupled together in vertical'alignment it is to be understood thatgears may be introduced. between the engine and generator .shafts of each unitso ras to operate the generator at a speed higher than that of the engine.

A suitable arrangement of gears is shown inI Figure 3. An internal'gear 34 is mounted upon theend oi the crank shaft 9 and a pinion 38, meshing with the internal gear 34, is mounted upon the upper end of the generator shaft 25. In this case the step'bearing 26 is disposed below the pinion 35. the armature ,mayV be disposed-atthe lower end sisma asturiana-the directcoupied or the geared form.; Obviously, instead of an internalgear and pinion, an external gear and pinion` may beemployed, but the arrangement shown in Figure, 3 requires less offset between the centers of thetwo. shafts. the generator units towards each other, leaving the engine units substantially 'in the position shown. If desired, the engines may be moved outwardly from the center Vand the generator' units nearercenter in order to secure the desired interposed gear without yappreciable disturbance of the space arrangement herein illustrated as the preferred embodiment. 5 The'details of engine construction and of generator construction and connections have been omitted for the `sake of clearness, inasmuch'as the engine may be constructed infany preferred Iir desired, the step bearing. for.

There is amplerspace to offsetV manner consistent with lthe requirements above indicated.` -Likewi'sa'the generator construction may be varied-and' the manner or connecting 'the units to the storage battery (not shown) andyor to each other and/or to the driving motors for the craft'are omitted, since we prefer to ernploy the same arrangement of electrical connections disclosedin our aforesaid application.

We do not intend 'to be limited to the details shown or described, except insofar as they appear in thev appended claims. VIt will be obvious to those skilled in the art'that numerous changes andm'odications may be made without depart-V ingfrorn the spirit'and scope of'our invention. A"We clairn: f

lrln combination a substantially Vcylindrical hull section, a transverse door, frames supporting the iioor frornthe lower side oi the hull section, a plurality of engine-generator unitsdisposed. two abreast inVV said hullsection, said units comprising Veach an engine andra generator having shafts disposed verticallythe engine of each unit being disposed substantially'above the floor and generator of each unit disposed substan' tiallybelow the floor, and a vertical step bearing disposed `between the engine and generatorffor sustaining thevertical load;v on'the generator shaft.

r:2."In a submarine vessel, a substantially cylindrical hullfsection, a transversedeck plate at approximately the levelof thel longitudinal axis of the hull, an engine unit having a relatively short vertical crank shaft, a crank case, and' horizontal- A ly'disposed cylinders supported above said deck plata-a direct current generator having a verf tically disposed armature shaftV driven bysaid crank shaft, said generator having-an Yenclosinghousingrigidly secured tothe crank'case oi the engine, Vsaid housinfy being disposedsunVN stantially below-said deck plates, and connec tions from the topoY the housing'fto the intake passageways of the engine-for delivering air from theinterior of the lgener ator housing to the en-Y gine, said generator housinghaving an air inlet v at its lower end.

3. ln a submarine vessel, a hull section, a transverse deck plate, an engineegenerator unit comprising an engine having a vertically disposed crank sha'ft with horizontal cylinders, said cylinders havinf pistons connected in pairs to the crank shaft to secure a crank shaft of short length, a vertically disposed crank case, said engine being disposed above the deck plate, a generator having a vertical armature shaft arranged to be driven by the crank shaft, a closed frame and housing for the generator having its upper end rigidly coupled to the crank case, an air inlet passageway for the housing opening into the lower end of the housing, and an air outlet from the top of the housing leading to the engine intake, said generator being disposed substantially below said deck plate.

4. In a device or the class described, a lsub- ,stantially cylindrical hull section, a transverse deck plate disposed at approximately the lon` gitudinal axis of the hull section, a plurality of pairs of enginc-generator units disposed two abreast in rows in said hull section, cach unit comprising an engine disposed above the deck plate and a connected generator disposed below the deck plate, each engine comprising a short vertical crank shaft, a vertical crank case, hori zontally disposed cylinders with the pistons of ,said cylinders coupled in pairs to the cranks of the shaft, an exhaust manifold for a row of engines disposed above said engines the row and conducting the exhaust gases outside the hull sec-Y tion, each generator having a vertical armature shaft driven by the corresponding engine crank shaft and having a housing trarne rigidly cou;` pled to the engine crank case, an air inlet connection opening into the interior or" the housing at its lower end and an outlet connection at the top or the-housing, and frames supporting the units and deck plate in said hull. A "i 5. in a submarineja'hull section, adeck plate disposed at approximately the longitudinal axis of the hull section, an 'engine-generator unit having a vertical engine disposed'substantially above said deck plate and a vertical generator disposed: substantially below said deck plate', and

means for conducting air through the generator to the exclusion of liquid in the bottom of the hull section. l 1 `6. In a device ofthe class described, ahull section, a deck plate across the middle of the hull section, an engine-generator unit vhaving a radial engine with a vertical crank shaft disposed substantially above the deck, and a generator with aver-tical armature shaft disposed sublcrank'case and the `generator having ajhousing rigidly coupled together and a driving connection between said shaits, vsaid enginehaving pistons coupled in pairs to the cranks ofthe crank shaftto provide a minir in length of crankshaft.

'7. In a device the class described, a hull sec` tion, a deck plate across the middle of the'hull section, an engine-generator unit having a radial engine with a verticalr crank shaft 'disposedsub'-A stantially above the deck, and a generator -with a vertical Yarmature shaft disposed substantially below deck, saidlen'gine having a crank case and the generator havinga housing Arigidly coupied together a driving connection between in pairs to the cranks of the crank shaftto provide a minimum length of crank shaft, air de# fist stantially'below the deck, said engine having a said` shafts, saidengine having pistonsfcoupled f below the deck to the lower end or" the generator j housing for admitting cooling air to the interior ci the generator.

8. In combination, a vertically disposed engine generator unit comprising a radial injection engine having a ring-like exhaust manifold at its ,"7

upper end and having a vertical crank shaft and crank case, and a generator having a vertical armature shaft with a closed vertical housing, said shafts being interconnected and the crank case being mounted on the generator housing,V

means ior conducting air from the top of the housing, and means for delivering air to the lower end of the housing.`

9. In combination, a vertically disposed engine generator unit kcomprising a radial'injection engine having a ring-like exhaustl manifold at its upper end and having a vertical crank shaftfand crank case, and a generator having a vertical armature Vshait with a closed vertical housing, said shafts being interconnected and the crank case being mounted on the generator housing, said generator housing comprising a'plurality of air delivery ducts leading from the upper endY of the housing to the individual cylinders, said generator housing having a plurality of vertical.

ducts extending down along the sides of the housing and opening into the lower end of the housing to admit air from above the lower end of the unit, said generator having a commutator disposed at the Vupper end of the shaft and there being normally closed inspection openings at the upper. end of the housing permitting access to the commutator. i

if). In a submarine vessel, a substantially cylindrical hull'section, a transverse deck plate at approximatelyT the level of the longitudinal axis of the hull, an engine unit having a relatively short vertical crank shaft, a crank case and substantially horizontal cylinders supported above said deck plate, a generator having a vertically disposed armature shaft driven by said crank shaft, said generator havingan enclosed housing rigidly secured to the crank case of the engine, said housing beingdisposed substantially Vbelow said deck plate, and connections for passing cooling air through said housing, said connections opening into the top and bottom of said housing and being adapted to exclude any liquid which maybe contained in the bottom of the hull from entering the generator housing.

Vll. In a submarine vessel, a substantially cylindrical hull section, a transverse deck plate at approximately the level of the longitudinal Y axis of the hull, an engine unit having a relatively short vertical crank shaft, a crank case and substantially horizontal cylinders supported above said deck plate, a generator having a vertically disposed armature shaft driven by said crank shaft, said generator having an enclosed housing rigidly secured tothe crank case of the engine, said housing being disposed substantially below said deck plate, and means for passing cooling air through said generator housing, said means excluding from the housing any liquid which may be contained in the bottom of the hull.

12. In a'devicey of the class described, a hull section, aY-deck plate across the middle ofl the hull section, an engine-generator unit having a radial engine with a vertical crank shaft disposed substantially above the deck, and a generator with a vertical armature shaft disposed .substantially below the deck,-saidv engine having of the housing.

a .crank case andthe generator having a housing rigidly coupled together and a driving connection between said shafts, said engine having pistons coupled in pairs to the cranks of the crank shaft to provide a minimum length of crank shaft, and a vertically disposed air inlet duct extending from a point below the deck to the lower end of the generator housing for admitting coolk Y ing air to the interior of the generator. i

13. In combination, a vertically disposed engine generator unit comprising a radial injection engine haivng a ring-like exhaust manifold at its upper end and having a vertical crank shaft and crank case, and a generator having a vertical armature shaft with a closed vertical housing, said shafts being interconnected and the crank case being mounted on the generator housing, said generator housing having a plurality of verticalducts extending down along the sides of the housing and opening into the lower end of the housing to admit air from above the lower end of the unit, said generatorfhaving a commutator` disposed at the upper end of the shaft and there being normally closed inspection openings at the upper end of `the housing permitting access to the commutator. y

14. I n a device of the class described, a substantially cylindrical hull section a horizontal deck plate across the-hull section, an engine having a vertical crankshaft and a crank case disposed above the deck plate, Va generator having a housing secured to the crank case, a vertical armature shaft having a driving connection with the crank shaft, an armature on said armature shaft,` saidarmature having a commutator at its upper end, the housing having inspection openings at .its upperrendradjacent said commutatonsaid openings having relea'sable covers and a vertically `disposed air inlet duct integral with .the housing and opening into the lower end LAWRENCE Y. SPEAR. HUGO E. GRIESHABER. ERNEST NIBBS.

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